Sweep nabs 12 illegals in Neosho

A large majority of the 34 illegal immigrants arrested in Missouri during a weekend sweep by federal immigration officers were taken into custody in Carthage and Neosho.

John Hacker

A large majority of the 34 illegal immigrants arrested in Missouri during a weekend sweep by federal immigration officers were taken into custody in Carthage and Neosho.

Carl Rusnok, spokesman for the U.S. Immigrations and Customs department, said 16 people were arrested in Carthage and 12 were arrested in Neosho by the Kansas City-based Fugitive Operations Team.

Rusnok said these teams were created specifically to find "fugitive aliens," or aliens who fail to leave the country after having been ordered to do so by a federal immigrations judge.

From Friday to Monday, 11 fugitive operations teams made 225 arrests in: Missouri, Illinois, Ohio, Michigan, New York and Wisconsin.

Of the 34 aliens arrested by ICE's Kansas City Fugitive Operations Team, 10 were fugitives, and two were aliens with criminal convictions. The arrests took place in the following Missouri cities: Springfield, Neosho, Carthage, Joplin, Webb City, Monett, Branson and Willow Springs. Those arrested are from the following countries: El Salvador, Guatemala, Mexico and The Philippines.

Rusnok said of the 16 arrested in Carthage, eight were fugitives who had ignored a previous order by a judge to leave the country and the other eight were “immigration status violators.”

One of those arrested in Carthage was in the U.S. after having been previously deported, a felony punishable by 20 years in federal prison if convicted, Rusnok said.

Of the 12 arrested in Neosho, two were fugitive aliens who had ignored a previous judge’s order, and the other 10 were people in the country illegally.

Rusnok said he didn't know why Carthage and Neosho had the largest numbers of aliens arrested.

“Our fugitive alien teams don’t just drop in on an area randomly, they do a lot of research and they pinpoint a location before they go out,” Rusnok said. “These teams were created specifically to go after those people who ignore a judge’s order to leave the country.”

ICE has established 75 Fugitive Operations Teams nationwide that are specially trained and dedicated solely to identifying, locating and arresting aliens who have absconded after receiving deportation orders. The increased fiscal year 2008 budget allocates funds for ICE to implement an additional 29 teams nationally.

“Our teams working together across six states today sent a strong message to those who choose to disregard our nation’s laws,” said Julie L. Myers, Homeland Security Assistant Secretary for ICE, in a written release sent out by Rusnok. “If you ignore a judge’s order of removal, ICE will find you, arrest you, and you will be returned to your home country.”

ICE established its Fugitive Operations Program in 2003 to eliminate the nation’s backlog of immigration fugitives and ensure that deportation orders handed down by immigration judges are enforced.

The teams prioritize cases involving immigration violators who pose a threat to national security and community safety. These include child sexual predators, suspected gang members and those who have convictions for any violent crimes.

Nationwide, ICE Fugitive Operations Teams have arrested more than 72,000 illegal aliens since the first teams were created.

There are approximately 585,000 fugitive aliens in ICE’s databases; but the targeted enforcement strategy is paying off. Last year, the nation’s fugitive alien population declined for the first time in history and continues to do so — in large part due to the work of the Fugitive Operations Teams.